Merra (Fractures Alternate Universe)
Merra was a Toa of Water chosen by the Order of Mata Nui to protect the Kanohi Avohkii, in the Fractures Universe. Biography Early life Similarly to the majority of other Toa of Water, Merra began her life as a Ga-Matoran on Spherus Magna. For a number of years, she aided in the early construction of the Matoran Universe with no worldly desires or true consciousness. After a considerable period of heavy labor, in a rural area of the Northern Continent with a small community of Matoran, endeavoring to carry out her purpose by ensuring the continued functionality of the Great Spirit. Shortly after the successful launch of the Matoran Universe, Merra gained true sentience due to Velika's tampering with the Matoran species. Although she continued her original task, Merra was imbued with emotions and became self-aware. Whilst in her village, Merra sprouted a budding interest in combat and engineering, often building motors for fishing boats and commencing formal combat training under the instruction of her local Toa. At this time in her life, she aspired to one day reach Metru Nui and lend her hand as a mechanic in Le-Metru. She was often found along the outskirts of her neighboring Matoran settlement, honing her agility by swinging through trees. Around, 79,100 Years Ago, while fear of backlash over the Metru Nui Civil War and the repercussions of the Great Disruption was still present issues, Salaak arrived on the Northern Continent. He journeyed to Merra's village on behalf of the Order of Mata Nui to headhunt a new generation of Toa. The Order agent became impressed by Merra's diverse lifestyle and gave her one of the Toa Stones he had been carrying, which had belonged to a Toa of Earth who wished to retire. Reading the instructions on a map that she received with the stone, Merra took it to her local temple, where she met several other Matoran, Salu, and Omashu, who had also been given Toa Stones by Salaak. Placing their stones in their respective slots in the Suva, they were coated with an energy which transformed them into Toa. Having never seen a Toa before, the group had relatively low expectations and, thus, imagined somewhat dated forms. Life as a Toa After their transformation, the team protected the Northern Continent for many years. Merra's fellow Toa, Graviton became obsessed with the Kanohi Kualsi and believed that Teleportation Kanoka could unlock the key to revolutionizing transport. The scientist attempted an experiment but was injured during an explosion caused by overloading the power, charging his particles and giving him destructive tendencies. The Toa of Gravity was imprisoned for a number of years before breaking free and attacking his fellow Toa. With the aid of Toa Vilnius, Merra and her team were able to overpower their former ally and handed him over to Botar, who imprisoned him in a cell beneath Metru-Nui that was better suited for his immense power than the Pit was and allowed his energies to supply the city's electricity reserves. After this experience, Merra and the remaining members of their team were deemed worthy of joining the Order of Mata-Nui, swiftly moving up the ranks to positions of some standing, though Merra became more involved in the administrative side of the Order, often dispatching other agents into the field and interrogating prisoners. However, during the events of the Final Push, Toa Takanuva was killed and his Kanohi Avohkii was smuggled back into the Order of Mata Nui's possession. As the organisation required a secret bunker with which to hide the coveted Kanohi, Merra was given the opportunity to oversee the Avohkii's protection alongside her brother-Toa, Salu. With Turaga Autolycus' approval, Salu named the fortress "Marlott". It was here that Merra befriended Salaak, a like-mannered Order of Mata Nui operative. Marlott Ninety-three years ago, however, one of the village's Matoran, Jekkai, was given a Toa Stone and imbued with the powers of a Toa. Merra was subsequently charged with a degree of responsibility over Jekkai's training, her teachings mainly involving education in way of the Toa Code. Similarly, Salu and Salaak shared this burden for three years, until the Toa of Air finally lost patience and publicly refused to continue acting as Jekkai's mentor. The following day, Merra performed her daily duty of supervising Matoran agricultural workers as they performed a rotation at a nearby lakeside, mining for metal ore, collecting fruit, and fishing. However, towards the end of the day, a Ga-Matoran named Alika confronted Merra with concerns over the safety of her husband, Carnac. Ordering the Matoran to retire for the day, Merra escorted Alika on a brief walk to Inika Falls, where the Toa of Water then revealed the corpse of Toa Jaller to the Matoran. Whilst restoring the fallen Toa of Fire's resting place, Merra spotted Toa Jekkai perched on the edge of the waterfall. Seeking to warm her friend's spirits, she sat with him and advised Jekkai to part company with his domineering wife, Sarnii, on account of her continued toying with his heart. Though reluctant to admit that he had a problem, Jekkai eventually accepted her advise and began a rigorous quest to redeem himself in his self image by training. Merra then escorted the Toa of Ice back to the lakeside, where she assigned him with the task of balancing atop an uneven rock jutting out of the lake for a full hour so as to earn a Kanohi mask. However, the comments of spectators caused Jekkai to lose focus and fall into the current within a few minutes of starting, restarting the task twice. Whilst the Toa were divided, however, the Cult of Darkness launched its first series of attacks on the village, coordinating a successful strike against the fortress of Marlott. Simultaneously, a rogue Toa of Air named Leontes and a Skakdi named Oltab ambushed Merra and Jekkai at the lakeside. Jekkai was forced to jump off the rock to safety, but was unable to reach the shore and, instead, got swept up in the current of the lake. Before she could rescue her fellow Toa, however, Merra was engaged by Oltab, enabling Leontes to incapacitate an Onu-Matoran named Kapla and causing Jekkai to lose his grip and be pulled away into a subterranean water channel. Forced to combat both attackers, Merra ordered the Matoran workers to retreat from the scene, only to be struck in the chest and knocked to the ground. While she was down, Leontes proceeded to snap her Turbine Staff, rendering the weapon useless. Taking advantage of this distraction, however, Merra managed to edge closer to the lake and call upon her Elemental Powers to blast her aggressors with a series of water bursts. This movement was reinforced by Sonitous, who hurled a small rock at Leontes, prompting Oltab to engage the Matoran. Fortunately, a wandering Toa of Plasma named Thode appeared on the scene after fishing Jekkai out of the water further downstream. Ordering Jekkai to draw the remaining Matoran away from the fight, Merra struck Leontes across the head with the broken shaft of her Turbine Staff. A brief skirmish then took place between Leontes and Merra, which eventually resulted in the Toa of Air regrouping with Oltab and fleeing the scene. Inspecting the damage of the battle, Merra witnessed Thode and Alika reviving Kapla by replacing his broken Kanohi. With the other Matoran scattered to the wilderness, the Toa of Water formed a brief alliance with Thode to reunite the Matoran villagers and mount a counter-attack. However, Merra swiftly became irritated by her fellow Toa's seeming abandonment of the Toa Code, the foundation upon which Toa society was constructed. Ultimately removing his own Kanohi to reveal a series of facial scars, Thode eventually earned Merra's trust. Reconvening with the remaining villagers, the party was confronted by Makuta Scarla. Frustrated with the slow progress of her Visorak search parties, the Makuta decided to make an example of the captive Toa Salu by executing him above Inika Falls, so the remaining Matoran resistance members could be drawn out of the wilderness. As such, Merra witnessed Salu being pulled to his feet and chained to an iron girder. Unwilling to be made a spectacle out of, the Toa of Air made one final push for freedom, striking Vorkin in the jaw with a blow from his iron restraints before attempting to flee the scene. However, he was struck from behind by a Cordak Missile, fired by former Field Marshal Oltab. Revealing herself in this moment of anguish, Merra gave away the position of the Matoran and was forced to fend off the Cult of Darkness with Thode. However, confronted by Salaak under the control of an Infected Kanohi, Merra was drawn away from the battlefield, forcing her to engage her old friend and battle him into submission. Unable to carry him to safety whilst being hunted by the Cult of Darkness, Merra was reluctantly forced to flee the scene in shame. Trailing the villagers for some distance, Merra eventually regrouped with her allies once more, this time converging under Turaga Autolycus' orders on a secret outpost in the distant treeline. Still shaken by the death of Salu, Merra rallied the Matoran to organize a counterattack and comforted Toa Jekkai, who had remained behind to offer Salu a burial. With the Matoran setting up a camp, Merra accompanied Turaga Autolycus to a nearby battlefield, looting several of the bodies for weapons and uncovering a damaged Exo Toa unit. For several days, the Toa of Water labored to restore the damaged chassis, though she would grow increasingly suspicious of Toa Thode. Trailing the Toa of Plasma deep into the woods, Merra witnessed him uncover a hidden weapons cache in secret, left for him by an unknown accomplice. With the Exo Toa unit restored and with the Matoran raring to avenge their fallen comrades, Merra gifted much of her armor to Toa Jekkai, reverting back to her original Toa form to more capably pilot the Exo Toa chassis. Offering words of encouragement to the young Toa of Ice, Merra would then spend the remainder of the night performing a reconnaissance mission to scope out gaps in the defenses. To be added Abilities and Traits Cold, collected, and down to earth, Merra is able to remaim calm and unafraid in the face of danger. Although she is not a born leader she is able to maintain order in chaos. Merra is also a Toa who takes her duty in a literal sense, valuing the protection of Matoran above all else. Having been somewhat ignorant to the needs of villagers in her early career as a Toa, Merra often adopts radical action in order to ensure their preservation at her own expense. As a Matoran, Merra possessed a minuscule amount of elemental Water energy, which manifested itself through a naturally enhanced lung capacity, which enabled her to hold her breath underwater for roughly two minutes at a time. As such, she was gifted with a natural affinity with the ocean and greater maneuverability underwater. Upon becoming a Toa she gained full control over her element, allowing her to create, control, and absorb most forms of Liquid Protodermis. Mask and Tools Throughout the course of her Matoran life and later as a Toa, Merra was known to have utilized a Mask of Rebounding. This Kanohi enabled her to cause non-exploding or non-fragmenting projectiles to return to her after being thrown. The mask's power used a small degree of telekinesis, meaning the greater she concentrated, the more accurate the rebound would be. As a Matoran, Merra utilized a crossbow as her principal means of defense, typically used to fend off dangerous Rahi but more often used recreationally. Upon her transformation into a Toa, Merra equipped herseld with the Turbine Staff, a two-handed Protosteel spear capable of rotating and expanding outwards to deliver a jet of her elemental Water power. This weapon was damaged and discarded during the Siege of Marlott. Forms Quotes Trivia *Merra's Turbine Staff was largely inspired by Nathan Evo's Vortex Staff in the canon Hero Factory continuity. Appearances *''Zero Hour'' **''Zero Hour: Prequel'' - First Appearance; Mentioned *''Frozen Calling'' - Mentioned See also *Brickshelf Gallery Category:User:BobTheDoctor27 Category:Toa Category:Final Push Combatants Category:Toa of Water Category:Water Category:Matoran Category:Ga-Matoran Category:Residents of Morica Category:Order of Mata Nui